Explosion Rocks Village of Wappingers, Home in Flames (Photos)

A deafening boom followed by huge plumes of smoke and flames followed a reported explosion in the Village of Wappingers Falls on Thursday.

At around Noon, the explosion could be heard from miles away, followed by the sounds of fire engines arriving from every direction. A home not far from the center of the Village of Wappingers Falls on Mill Street was seen completely engulfed in flames.

Mill Street has been turned into a triage and planning station, with ambulances treating volunteer firefighters badly burned and suffering from smoke exposure. I witnessed two firefighters badly bruised and bloodied, with apparent burns on their faces declining medical assistance so others could be tended to first.

Authorites are now confirming that the blast was called by a ruptured gas line. Central Hudson is on site. Firefighters were still seen working to extinguish the flames well into the afternoon.

The structure is on Brick Row, a small alleyway off of Mill Street next to Wappingers Lake. Before and after photos from Google Maps and the current scene are next to each other below. They show that two entire sections of the multi-family dwelling are now completely gone.

Construction equipment could be seen where the alleged explosion took place and there were signs that the structure was currently under renovations.

The flames could be seen from across Wappingers Lake, with many pedestrians standing along West Main Street, visibly shaken from hearing and feeling the loud explosion and watching the fire continue to spiral out of control.

Governor Kathy Hochul posted on social media that she had been briefed on the situation and was urging locals to follow directions from first responders.

More Photos Below

Police were seen slowly shutting down most of Main Street to traffic as more and more fire departments arrived at the scene. Much of East and West Main Street is closed to traffic, as well as an area near Veteran's Park in what appears to be a staging area for Medivac helicopters.

Streets closed on Thursday afternoon include:

• Mill Street between Main Street and Pelham Street
• Pelham Street
• High Street between Mill Street and Spring Street
• Spring Street between High Street and Pelham Street

We will update this story as more information is available.

The images below were taken just before 1pm.